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The Republic of Belarus became the tenth member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. The relevant decision was signed on 4 July, during the 24th meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO member states in Astana. The project of Eurasian integration includes the independent Belarusian lands, which are still the westernmost in the world's largest association, the accession to which President Alexander Lukashenko called a historic event.
Minsk very quickly fulfilled all the conditions for full integration into the SCO, and today Belarus received warm congratulations from friends from all over Eurasia. According to World Bank estimates, the combined GDP of the SCO states exceeded 24% of the world economy last year. The growth rates also exceed the world ones. In 2023, India's economy grew by 7.6 per cent, China's by 5.2 per cent, Kazakhstan's by 5.1 per cent, Uzbekistan's by 6 per cent and Kyrgyzstan's by 6.2 per cent. At the end of last year, the Russian economy grew by 3.6%, outpacing all G7 states, and in the first quarter of this year - by 5.4%. At the same time, the average rate of global GDP was 2.7%, while in the countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development - 1.7%, with forecasts of a medium-term recession.
The partners of the Eurasian Peoples’ Assembly call Belarus' gaining full membership in the SCO a great step forward, which has given additional guarantees of strengthening state sovereignty and high political subjectivity. The CIS Executive Committee quoted the address of the organizer of the expanded Astana Summit of the Eurasian organization, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
"The decision on full membership of the Republic of Belarus in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has been taken. Dear Alexander Grigorievich, I sincerely congratulate you. I am confident that today will become a bright page in the history of Belarus," said the chairman of the Summit.
Kasym-Jomart Tokayev also expressed confidence that Belarus would make its significant contribution to strengthening security in the SCO space.
China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan have the same status in the organization as Belarus. The leaders of the states signed the joint Astana Declaration of the organization. The document emphasizes the importance of strengthening the activities of the SCO Youth Council and promoting youth exchanges, while 2025 is declared the Year of Sustainable Development of the "Shanghai Family", which, among other things, introduces new "green light" regulations for foreign investment in ten SCO states. After the chairmanship of the Republic of Kazakhstan, China will take over the leadership of the organization.
The countries of the association oppose protectionist actions, unilateral sanctions and trade restrictions that undermine the multilateral trading system and impede global sustainable development. They also pledge to act in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter, which affirms the universality of all human rights, as well as their obligations to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms. The SCO declares the inadmissibility of applying "double standards" in these matters and interfering in the internal affairs of other states under the pretext of their "democratic defense". The states of the largest international association advocate comprehensive reform of the United Nations, headquartered in New York, in order to strengthen the authority of the organization.
The SCO Astana Declaration adopted a common statement on the principles of good-neighborliness, trust and partnership and called on all countries of the world to join the initiative of the association "On World Unity for Just Peace, Harmony and Development". President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko emphasized the importance of enriching the folk cultures of the unification, which is one of the priorities of the Eurasian Peoples’ Assembly.
"Belarus starts its work in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization with the understanding that the SCO is not only about security, economy and trade. It is also about mutual enrichment of cultures, which will lead to an obligatory rapprochement of our peoples," said the Belarusian Head of State.